To Know and Be Known
by Lamanth
Summary: ONE SHOT – Sometimes all you need is a chance. A chance to be seen for who and what you truly are. Itachi/Ino


**Disclaimer:** I don't own Naruto or any of its characters, merchandise, TV rights, ect… (I think you get the point.) Nor do I own the song 'I Wish I Could Fly' by Roxette.

* * *

Summery 

ONE SHOT – Sometimes all you need is a chance. A chance to be seen for who and what you truly are. (Itachi/Ino)

Like all of my work this is just something that happened to float through the empty void inside my head. Like it or hate it please R and R as honest opinions are always welcomed, as are random acts of worship.

* * *

Lamb: I've been wanting to write a story for Itachi and Ino for ages but I never had any ideas. Then after a series of coincidence I was going through my CD's and found this song.

**Muse:** And I can up with an inspiration to go with it.

_Dedi:_ Which means that we now have one fic dedicated to **Rainforestfrogs**, because we know how much she likes this pairing. So, **Rainforestfrogs**, this is for you.

Lamb: As always sorry for any bad spelling and if you feel the need to throw things at me please wait until I've hidden behind the sofa kay!?

M**use: **On with the fic!

* * *

_Pretty girl is suffering, while he confesses everything,  
Pretty soon she'll figure out,  
You can never get him out of your head,  
It's the way that he makes you cry,  
It's the way that he's in your mind,  
It's the way that he makes you fall in love,_

* * *

**To Know and Be Known**

The sky seemed to be filled with more stars than she had ever seen before, and she wondered if in fact they were all true stars or if some were the result of the harsh blow that had connected with her head. That would teach her to go off training by her self late a night you could end up in all sorts of difficult situations or run into all sorts of people...

The thought trickled through her brain like ice water, though she was unsure what importance it held. Come to that she wasn't sure how she had ended up hitting her head either. All she could remember was running through the woodland, running, running, running...

A movement in the shadows caused her to jerk her head upwards, which in turn caused a wave of nausea to wash over her. The girl squinted into the shadows as a figure slowly started to walk to where she knelt on the ground. The faint light given by the sliver of moon gradually illuminated a tall form clad in a dark cloak patterned with scarlet clouds ringed with white. His dark hair was pulled back save for the bangs that fell to frame a handsome pale face dominated by crimson eyes.

She didn't need to see the Konoha headband, with a slash running through the emblem, to identify the Akatsuki member. She knew all about his reputation having listened to the village elders discussing him on many occasions. They called him so many things; dangerous, monster, cold-blooded killer, evil, things that should have made her feel terrified and yet she didn't.

It was impossible not to sense the raw power that emanated from him, but that was all there was. There was no killer intent, no indication that he wished her any harm, no negative force of any kind. This was the person her classmate had left their village intending to kill? In her mind it made no sense.

He watched in contemplative silence as the child, for she could not be much more then twelve, tried unsuccessfully to get to feet. It was easy for him to see that she was still suffering the after effects of her fall, her foot had caught in a tree root and down she had gone. So silly to be running at night, especially alone, especially when her mind was so clearly on other things.

Wondering how she would react, he crossed over to where she sat on the dirt and offered her his hand, a silent invite to get to her feet. The girl didn't hesitate, simply slide her hand into his and allowed him to pull her to her feet. He had expected that she would instantly move away, yet she did not, indeed when she swayed slightly as she tried to get her balance she leaned into him for support.

She tilted her head up and gave him a warm smile that he slowly returned. She was still smiling when her eyes rolled back in her head in she faded into unconsciousness. He easily caught her before she hit the ground for a second time.

_Halfway through the night,  
I wake up in a dream,  
Echoes in my head,  
Make every whisper turn into a scream, _

Blue eyes snapped open in the dark and for a moment flicked rapidly around the room as she tired to fight the sense of disorientation. She could still smell the sweet sharp scent of pine, feel the heat of the sun on her skin and the soft summer wind in her hair. But most of all she could still feel his presence all around her, the memory of his touch was so vivid, far too vivid for something she had never really experienced.

Her shallow breathing and rapidly beating heart finally began to settle into a normal rhythm as her eyes grew accustomed to the darkness. The known and familiar shape of her room materialised out of the shadows. It had been almost a year since she had met him and yet hardly a night went past when he did not appear in her dreams in one form or another.

Sometimes he would be the main focus and at others he would just be a presence hovering in the background, but always he would be there. It was strange and disconcerting but it also brought her a strange sense of comfort, something that she desperately needed.

In the year since that chance meeting so much that she had thought stable in her life changed. Friends that had been enemies became friends once more only to once again push her aside in favour of someone else. Like the old toy that was tossed away when there was the promise of something new and shiny. People she had thought would be with her forever started to drift away, while others just vanished completely.

All that she knew changed, until even the familiar seemed strange and unknown. But always there was him, the dark soothing presence in her dreams. Never once did it cross her mind that she should tell someone of the encounter, it was no ones business but hers. People could say he was the enemy, but he wasn't hers and he had not given her a single reason to think of him as such.

Fear was not a factor either. All she could remember was sensation as dizziness washed over her, the insistent tug of gravity and everything fading into darkness. The next thing she had known she had been waking up in her own bed, in her own room, with only one explanation for how she could have gotten there. Something told her that she should feel sacred by his actions. She had had a known killer in her room. But rather than terror she felt safe, even comforted, by the knowledge.

Half whispered voices said she should panic because how was it he had even known where she lived. But the thought of him watching over her was not one that chilled her to the bone. Rather it made her glow with an inner warmth. Under his brother's scarlet gaze she had felt like a lab rat under examination, but when she thought of his eyes on her she felt protected. Almost as if he were standing guard over her.

_I dreamed I could fly,  
Out in the blue,  
Over this town,  
Following you,  
Over the trees,  
Subways and cars,  
I'd try to find out,  
Who you really are,_

The girl was now a teen, someone on the way to finding out who she would become in later life. She was on a journey that was both long and lonely, following the road of self-discovery and he only hoped that she would be able to live with the person she would become. Many shinobi could not face the reality of what they grew into and he did not wish such a fate upon her. And yet it looked as if there would be little he could do to halt the inevitable.

She was strong it was true, far stronger than her comrades were, even if it was a strength that they were all oblivious of. But he saw it; he saw and marvelled at it because he would never be as strong as she was. Slowly, piece by seemingly insignificant piece her world was falling apart around her. People who should have always been with her were leaving her alone. Teachers, friends, family. One by one they slipped away, but always she picked up the fragments of her life and moved on.

He watched her offer her strength to others and saw how she supported them, became their rock when the world tilted wildly on its axis.

Yes, she was strong, but she was also weak in a way that defied explanation. The young blonde could take the pain of others and make it her own and in doing so rendered herself defenceless. She hurt, and bleed and suffered because she let her feelings rule her, but in spite of that he was sure that she did not indulge in self pity.

He had never seen a wild thing sorry for its self. He knew that wild bird would fall frozen dead from a bough without ever once having felt sorry for its self. But he also knew that the slender kunoichi would be the one who would cry over that same frozen body. And it was something he could not help but marvel at.

She was good at what she did. He had seen her in action. Seen the skill she possessed. Watched as she made the swift and effortless skill. All this he watched, the silent hunter at work, and yet he could not understand how a girl who could be such a cold blooded killer had managed to retain such innocence. And he wondered how much longer she would be able to hold on to that rarest of gifts.

Most, if not all, shinobi became tainted by the amount of blood that they spilled it was a fact. A fact he knew well, just as he knew that sooner or later the petals of this pure Konoha blossom would be stained crimson. And he did not think he would be able to stand it.

_In the middle of the night,  
Cool sweatin' in my bed,  
Got the windows open wide,  
Thinkin' about all the things you said,_

It was stupid, she knew that, but she had known it was stupid all those years ago and that hadn't stopped her from running in the night. And it wasn't going to stop her now. Not when instinct and some other voice she couldn't identify was calling her on, telling her that this was where she had to be. Something wanted her, maybe even needed her, to be there. And after many long years, the slender blonde had learned that it paid to listen to the things her mind told her.

Faster and faster she pushed herself flitting from shadow to shadow not knowing what it was she sort. Knowing only that she would recognise it when she finally found it. So intent was she on her objective that she failed to spot the tree root, the same one that had tripped her three years past, until her foot caught in it and she saw the ground rush up to meet her. She closed her eyes and braced her body for an impact that never came.

There was an arm around her waist, a strength keeping her from falling and as she regained her balance she looked up into a face that had haunted her dreams for more nights than she could remember. He released her and stepped back, happy in himself with the knowledge that she was not about to hit the forest floor again. A warm smile lit up her face as she took in every aspect of him, marvelling at how nothing had changed as if the last time she had seen him had only been moments before.

Except...

She stepped up to him and without waiting for permission took hold of his right arm, raising it so that she could examine the long gash that ran the length of his forearm. All the time he watched her with a steady, slightly bemused, gaze but he did not try to free his arm from her hold.

"You silly."

The first words that they shared and it was a huff of irritation such as a mother might give a wayward child and her look was accusatory. She released his arm but bade him hold it up while she deftly shifted her fingers through a well memorised set of seals. She would never be a gifted medic-nin but she did have some small skill and she would be damned if she'd just let him walk off with a cut like that.

Chakra glowed milky green around her hands as she held them just above his wounded limb and all the time he just watched her with that same unworried gaze. Her brow furrowed slightly in concentration and she nibbled on her lower lip as she worked and he wondered if she knew what an alluring picture she presented. In all likelihood she did not, she was the sort of girl who would spend hours on her appearance, not realising that she looked more beautiful with out artificial assistance.

When she was happy with the state of his arm she drew back and formed another set of seals. The chakra once more glimmered around her hands as she ran the diagnostic jutsu from his head to toe and then back once more checking for any other injures. The faintest hint of a smile tugged at his lips and he let her have her way, if the girl wished to fuss he would not stop her. Only when he felt the cool of her chakra behind his tired eyes did his passive look change and his cool mask slip.

She smiled shyly at the startled look on his face and gave a half shrug as she continued in her chosen task. "You're in pain. The Sharingan it... it hurts you."

The merest suggestion of a nod was his only reply.

It would be impossible for the most skilled medic to heal all the damage that had been done over the years, but she did her best relieving as much of the pain as she could, reducing the inflammation and healing what little her skill permitted. When at long last she had done all that she could she allowed her hands to fall to her side and her head to fall as she sighed with fatigue.

"Sweet girl."

His voice was a soft murmur as he placed his hands on her cheeks and slowly raised her head to meet his gaze. She just had time to notice that once again the faintest hint of a smile flirting with the corner of his mouth before he leaned in and kissed her softly.

_I wish I could fly,  
Out in the blue,  
Over this town,  
Following you,  
I'd fly over rooftops,  
The great boulevards,  
To try to find out,  
Who you really are,  
Who you really are, _

Was it an obsession, he wondered. Or was it simply that having found one last trace of all that was pure and good in this world he did not wish to see it lost due to some careless hurt or thoughtless action. Perhaps it was some cross between the two and he was some strange parody of a guardian angel all be it one with ragged wings and tarnished halo.

She moved through her life fill with strife and trial and yet remained unaware that his eyes followed her whenever he got the chance. Something, for him at least, had change that night in the forest. Not with the kisses, not with her sweet acceptance of his embraces, but when she had unthinkingly reached out to help him. Her eyes had fixed upon him and she had not seen an enemy or someone to be feared and shunned, but someone who needed help. Someone one she wanted to help.

His crimson gaze followed her as she moved deftly through the dappled shadows. Whether she knew it or not she had healed far more than his arm that night and it was not only from his eyes that she had removed pain. It was the greatest gift he had ever been given and his patron didn't have a clue what it was that she had done. But with that meeting she had given him the one thing he desperately needed...

Acceptance.

It was the thing that made her so indispensable, not only to him but to everyone that she met. She could accept anyone and more over accept them just they way they were. They said it was a rare person who could see the best in someone and she was such a person. Maybe it was childish and she was simply fooling herself. But he suspected that if given enough time she would be able to find at least one good thing about anyone she met, no matter how evil, depraved and whatever else the rest of the world thought. Even his own foolish, power crazed baby brother who had all but ripped out her heart when he left Konohagakure.

And for that reason, because she had seen the good in him, that he would watch over her. That he would protect her if he could. And if necessary would die trying to save her from whatever horrors fate had in store for her.

_I wish I could fly now,  
I wish I could fly now,  
I wish I could fly now,_

So this was what it was like to come face to face with death, to know that you had reached the end of your life. It was strange, she had expected to feel afraid, or to be exact she had expected to feel more afraid than she did. But the fear was being swamped by everything else. Sensation over ran every other instinct or feeling. Never before had she been so aware of the wind on her skin, the scent of the earth, even the steady thump of her heart as it beat away the last of her life.

They were all dead now, and those few that weren't, like her, soon would be. Her beloved Konoha beset by flames and crumbling to ruins around her even as she fled from the massacre and the traitor who was hell bent on its destruction. One by one they had been picked off, herded like animals through darkened woodland, slowly cut off from one another until she was one of the only ones left. Alone and unable to match his power knowing only that it was death its self that was tracking her.

And still they had forced her on, running her harder, faster, until she had finally clasped from exhaustion. For that was how he liked his prey, weakened and unable to fight back as he did whatever he pleased with them. Truly his masters apprentice.

He was far stronger than she could ever dream of being, and even if his power had not been earned she could not hope to compete with him. She could never have hoped for such a thing. Her chakra was spent and she could neither raise a hand in offence nor run in defence. A smile that had nothing to do with happiness twisted his lips as he slowly approached her and she wondered how she could have ever though him handsome.

He was nothing but a hollow and pale imitation of a man he would never be able to measure up to. In that moment she saw what he really was, an arrogant little boy who expected everything to be simply handed over to him. Someone who had never worked for anything, thinking that respect was his birth rite rather than something that had to be earned. An understanding smile pulled at her lips, yes it was all so clear to her now, no matter how much power he gained he would never even be able to compare to his older brother.

His feet crunched over fallen leaves, his hands forming the seals that would call forth the jutsu that would end her life. She tilted back her head, exposing her throat to him, as she gazed at the dark sky. A sky that was filled with a thousand pinpricks of light that surrounded a sliver of silver moon just as it had been on that night all those years ago.

She closed her eyes as she heard him cry out the name of the attack that would take her life. But his cry turned to a scream of fury as suddenly she felt twin walls of scotching heat rush past her, close enough for her to feel the fire in the air but not close enough to burn her. Opening her eyes all she could see was a wall of dancing jet-black flame and the gleaming crimson eyes of her saviour.

_I wish I could fly,  
Around and around,  
Over this town,  
The dirt on the ground,  
I'd follow your course,  
Of doors left ajar,  
To try to find out,  
Who you really are,  
Who you really are,_

"Itachi-san...?" Her half-wondering question trailed into silence as he placed his index finger to his lips.

He smiled slightly down at her confused expression, she was so grown up in many ways and yet at times it was easy to see that she was still hardly more than a child. A gifted and talented child, but a child none the less. And that was what made her so precocious to him, she had the ability to see with a child's eyes. She saw what was really there and not what she was expected to see. She saw him.

She didn't think when he extended his hand to her; she simply took it and followed him away from the dark boiling flames and that dark boiling temper that they separated them from. She could have pulled away and run from him, but the thought never crossed her mind.

They called him so many things; dangerous, monster, cold blooded killer, evil, things that should have made her feel terrified but with him all she ever felt was safe, protected and, though she had not known it until that moment, loved.

* * *

Lamb: I love Itachi, I really do. I'm going to try and write some more stories for this pairing but I think I'm also going to have Ino with a lot of the other guys too.

**Muse:** You're turning your favourite female character into a fic whore?

_Dedi:_ Well you should be able to relate to the whore part, but Muse aside, we hope you liked it **Rainforestfrogs**.

Please R and R I'd love to know what you thought.

Big love and inspiration

Lamanth


End file.
